I Hold With Those who Favor Fire
by wolfsrainrules
Summary: It's always Deku or one of the kids that go back in time to fix things. It's always the children that bare the burden, that remember the horrors that required such drastic measures to overcome...But what if it was Enji? (TimeTravel AU, co-written with Northpeach, Enji gets to be GOOD DAD)
1. Chapter 1

**I Hold With Those Who Favor Fire**

It's _always_ Deku or one of the kids that go back in time to _fix_ things. It's _always_ the children that bare the burden, that remember the horrors that required such drastic measures to overcome...

.

.

 _._

 _But what if it was Enji?_

Warning: So SO AU, Time Travel, starts Pre-Canon and moves on into it, I WILL HAVE MIGHTY PARENTS OR DEATH, FIGHT ME.

* * *

Enji Todoroki hit his knees, sucking in a sharp _pained_ breath. His eyes darted around even as he braced himself with a hand on the ground. Blood dripped from his body, his hero costume was in tatters, and every breath felt like glass over his throat.

 _It_ _ **worked.**_

Sweet kami, it _worked_.

Enji pulled in a breath that turned into a sob midway. _**It worked**_. He was- he didn't know what he had been doing before, but he was in a forest he hadn't seen standing in a little over a year. A Noumu had destroyed it. Leveled it until it was only ashes and craters left. A desolate wasteland barren of any vegetation.

His legs shook as he shoved himself to his feet, ignoring the grating scrape of his broken ribs with long practice. His leg tried to buckle under his weight, but Enji locked it and refused to allow his knees to hit the ground a second time.

He turned, scanning the surroundings. A forest fire. He could see the smoke ahead of him- he must have been on rescue duty. Considering he had been headed _out_ and he hadn't had any civilian in his arms nor could he sense any in the surroundings, he must have been done with containment.

In the distance was the distinct sound of helicopter blades beating the air. Probably a news crew, par for the course in these instances. Enji lifted his head, barely catching the blue of the sky over the dark haze of the smoke that was beginning to dissipate. Between that and the fire, visibility was low and as he was the only witness, there should be no problem with his story once he finished.

He'd check one last time, just to be sure, even with his injuries. He pushed away the pain and lifted a faintly trembling arm to wipe the blood dripping down his face. He'd taken several hits trying to get back, when Shigaraki had tried to interfere, but he couldn't leave anyone in this forest with what he was planning to do- what he _needed_ to do.

Deku had planned for it all. He'd been meticulous in it, and Enji couldn't help but respect the hell out of the man that boy had become, even if it was at the cost of his mentor. Deku hadn't been sure where he would show up in the past, only that it would be near some conflict, but this was something Enji could work with. That boy's encyclopedic knowledge of practically every fight in Endeavor's career definitely helped.

Once he was sure the forest was empty he placed himself near the fire and he let go.

His flames _roared_ as he built them up, hotter and hotter and _bigger_. He knew the Rescue Protocols with a fire like this, and the civilians would have been evacuated out even as Heroes with water quirks would be containing the mess to the forest that had already caught fire.

He would be able to let go, to vent, and to set up his cover story without worrying too hard about the fire that would cause getting out of hand.

He screamed alongside the raging flames, watching the orange brighten and change colors as he cranked the intensity up. He shoved his rage, his _pain_ over everything in the future that was no more, everything that had happened into his fire, watching it dance around him.

The lingering trees around him disintegrated into ashes around him and the ground _cracked_ from the heat he was releasing. The air was visibly wavering and had anyone other than him been anywhere _near_ , they would have either burned to death or suffocated from the lack of oxygen.

Enji let his head tip backwards, looking up at the sky, as his flames- a bright blue-white at this point- surged over the tree line. When his legs shook underneath him again, and his vision blackened just a bit at the edges, he pulled his rage, his pain back, shoving them into the darkest corners of his mind. He made sure to pull his own flames back as much as he could even as he staggered for the tree line in the distance. Just because it could be controlled by the others didn't mean it _had_ to be.

He wobbled, using the few trees left standing as an aide for moving as he weaved his way to the news crews and ambulances that protocol mandated be present. He'd need it. His vision was spotty and while he was moving under his own power, his strength was quickly fading. It was only long practice with forcing himself forward even with injuries that kept him moving.

He cursed under his breath as his bones- bruised, cracked, _aching_ \- or just flat out _broken-_ protested carrying his weight, and every movement pulled on his lacerations and cuts, visible skin painted black and blue with bruises.

He looked like hell. The cameras and reporters would absolutely be recording this and taking pictures and soon they would be plastered all over the news.

He didn't care, he was just _so glad_ it worked.

Bless that boy.

Enji could see the flashing lights of the police and ambulances on the scene through the trees, despite the growing darkness of his sight. Over the ringing in his ears, he could hear the crowd's murmurs growing louder as he neared them. They couldn't see him yet, but his flames had certainly caught attention. The barrier has definitely moved back some distance, which was wise considering the amount of firepower he had displayed.

He staggered again as he released the trees holding him up, stepping into sight and scanning the crowd. It was getting harder to breathe and there was the familiar taste of blood in his mouth. The noise level swelled from worried, confused murmuring to a chorus of cries and screams of horror and shock as he came fully into view.

Enji ignored it, bee-lining for one of the paramedics, who unfroze after a moment and rushed to meet him with a collection of team members. Bless every crisis management class those people were required to take. Enji couldn't help but be thankful as the leg that hadn't wanted to hold his weight, and the black that edged his vision finally won over sheer willpower.

His legs folded under him, even as he usually flung out an arm as his vision blackened completely before the paramedic made it to his side. He crumpled to the ground, wheezing as his ribs _screamed_ and he felt more than heard the hands on his broken body before his consciousness slid away. 

* * *

Enji woke up sluggish and slow. There was a heaviness to his limbs and it was difficult to open his eyes. It amped up his anxiety, as he _never_ did that, not even before the Disaster, back when he had simply been Number Two. He'd always been the sort to wake up all at once, ready to go, able to fight.

 _He couldn't do that right now_.

Something was in his blood, in his system, that made him slow.

 _Had he been captured?_

 _Had someone shot him with a tranq?_

 _Did he fight someone with a quirk recently?_

 _Where was he?_

 _What had happened?_

 _ **Where were his kids?**_

 _Blue flames, ash in the air, ice on the ground, a moment frozen in time, red and white, a scream trapped in his throat-_

Enji sucked in a harsh breath, and vaguely registered the beeping sound he could hear getting faster. He heard movement beside him, and shoved his body forward without thinking, ignoring how sluggish it felt, _forcing_ limbs to obey his command. His hands lashed out- the drug slowing his movements, but not enough to stop his hand from closing over fabric.

His lips pulled back over his teeth, baring them as he yanked whoever he had grabbed into view, as they had been coming at him from the side and behind his head. His flames barely managed to rise to his call but there was warmth down his limbs.

" _Calm, Todoroki-san._ "

He blinked in confusion as the fight left his body and he came face to face with a startled nurse, who had their hands up and open. Her body language was relaxed and as his surroundings were lighted by sunlight, he could clearly see her features. There was a familiar pressure that gently forced his body to automatically calm and the dots connected in his mind.

Ash blonde hair that was immediately recognizable, the nostalgic feeling of a well known quirk used by a nurse who has treated him many times. Hero nurses tended to be assigned to Pros, as they had habits of coming up swinging and angry after a fight that put them in the hospital. It was better- safer- to have someone the Pro recognized taking care of them when they woke up. Hero nurses were trained to deal with Pros waking violently, to judge their moods and the best way to react to the situation.

Shinsou-san had been his personal nurse for years- before the Disaster.

He relaxed his position as memories came back, letting his flames to recede back into his body. He loosened his hold on the nurse's uniform, allowing himself to lay back into the bed.

"Sorry," he grunted at the woman, the word coming out hoarse and whisper thin. Her quirk was voice-based, a variant of persuasion and thus able to calm him down. Which was why she had been assigned to him- aside from her calm and easy going temperament. "Didn't recognize you."

"It's alright, Todoroki-san, please don't force yourself to speak. You've been in our care for eight days. Your wife just left for the cafe to get your family lunch."

Enji froze in his bed, ignoring the dull throbbing of still aching wounds, tuning out the rest of Shinsou-san's words even as he registered them and cataloged them in the back of his head.

 _Wife?_

Koyuki was still-

Enji shoved himself up, much to the alarm of Shinsou-san, and couldn't help the _hiss_ of pain that involuntarily left his lips. The nurse quickly and efficiently pushed him back down, although she did adjust his bed into a more upright position. Regardless of the light, fluttering touches as his nurse checked his IVs and oxygen before whirling around with the promise of water, Enji's thoughts were far away.

 _What was the date?_

 _How far had he come back?_

 _And_ _ **how could he get ahold of Toshinori**_ _?_

His eyes focused on Shinsou-san as she began to ask what he remembered, a cup of water held out to him, as she questioned- when he remembered silent- if he could tell her what had happened.

Right. _Right_. He had a job to do. People- _Deku screaming at him, screaming for him to_ _ **go-run and save them, save**_ **us** _-_ to save.

He sipped carefully at the water, absently checking it for drugs or poisons before he actually tasted it. It slid pleasantly down his abused and dry throat and he was temporarily racked by a coughing fit that sent shooting spikes up pain across his ribs. He quickly calmed and downed the rest of the liquid before he spoke.

"There-" he paused, narrowing his eyes as if remembering, "there was a villain."

He let his eyes widen, shoved his body into a sitting position again, ignoring the pain that lanced through him as he rushed through his next words in a rough tones-

"I need to see All Might!" He let his _need_ , show in his eyes, the determination that he carried in his soul. He _would_ see Toshinori, _would_ see his future- his kids' future-

 _-Shouto screams, and fire_ rages _even as ice spikes into the sky-_

 _-rubble rises into the air and Uravity snarls-_

 _-electricity crackles over the air and Charge Bolt is screaming at them to_ run _even as he charges forward, his face twisted in determination-_

-changed.

"Todoroki-san, we can't-"

" _I_ _**need**_ _to see_ _**All Might, right now,**_ _Shinsou-san._ It's important!" he hissed as the nurse attempted to push him backwards once more, but Enji resisted.

Instead, his own hands clamped down on her wrists, his grip firm, but not painful as he stares into startled and concerned purple eyes that rose to meet his gaze. Something in her gaze firms and she nods sharply, once and takes a step back as Enji releases his grip on her.

"I have a number I can call, Todoroki-san, please wait patiently."

Enji nodded firmly, relaxing back against the elevated bed, closing his eyes and breathing deeply. He knew she'd be able to get into contact with him. They wouldn't give out the information, but the hospital- especially ones that looked after Pros- has ways to get into contact with all the big name heroes for quick response time and protection.

This was it.

This was the beginning.

If he could talk to Toshinori- if he could _convince him_ right here- everything would change. He wouldn't be able to change what he needed to change on his own. He'd need people in his corner. Earth shakers, big names, people who could _get things done_.

But most of all, he'd need the pillar that held up the world. The Symbol of Peace, the Number One Hero.

Toshinori was the most important to convince.

It was why Enji would be telling him- and _only him_ \- the truth. He knew it would take some convincing, but Deku- Izuku- had helped him with that. Had given him information he would have no way of knowing without being told by Toshinori himself or someone very close to him.

Someone like his successor.

He swallowed hard.

Everything rode on this moment. His hands shook just a little as he stared at the wall without seeing it.

Izuku had been Toshinori's son in all but blood. Enji wouldn't hesitate to tell All Might that. Their time together- it wasn't enough before it ended.

None of them had enough time, but Enji was the only one who wasted nearly _all of it._

 _Shouto...I'm sorry._


	2. Chapter 2

Toshinori wasn't surprised by much.

Being Number One, he got to see _a lot_ of crazy things. Having his Master chose him and having her quirk _passed_ onto him- via _DNA ingestion-_ also tended to take the number one slot on 'surprising things that have happened to me' in his head. Especially since One For All came with one's ready made nemesis.

He'd mostly seen it all really. So most things didn't really _shock_ him anymore- not deeply. Not enough to shake him. Not enough to leave his heart pounding, his breath caught in horror or shock, or his adrenaline spiking.

But having _Endeavor_ summon him to his hospital bed?

That was definitely in his Top Five.

He'd seen the news coverage of the incident- of course he had, it was all anyone was talking about right now- of Endeavor staggering out of the woods dripping blood and looking like a strong breeze would blow him over. It had surprised and worried Toshinori in equal measure. Todoroki Enji was _Number Two_. That wasn't a position lightly earned and kept over the years, no matter how young the man was when he obtained it. Perhaps _especially_ with how young he had been when he climbed the ranks.

So that left All Might with a question: what had taken Todoroki in a fight and matched him in strength enough that Endeavor took injuries like _that?_ Especially during what should have been a simple rescue and containment mission for nothing but a _forest fire_. There was no indication of villain movement nor activity, there wasn't anything that would have Endeavor look like _that._

Toshinori had watched the news coverage of the event and all had appeared normal until there was an explosion of flames, ones that had very quickly shifted to a flame so hot it burned white-blue.

Which was concerning on so many levels.

Several other Pro Heroes had been dispatched to look over the scene for evidence and clues as to _what happened._ But, as it had been pointed out, human remains are cremated at 1800 degrees fahrenheit and Endeavor's blue flames burned much hotter than that. So if Endeavor had used his flames on a _person_ , there would be no remains, save for the ashes.

Which, looking for human ashes in an entire forest that just burned down was an absolute waste of time. Still, with Endeavor hitting the one week mark of unconsciousness, and the investigation having found _nothing_ , it was decided that efforts would cease until Endeavor woke up and reported.

Toshinori was deeply concerned that _All Might_ was the first person Endeavor asked for, over his family and his pregnant wife as well. It didn't bode well. Todoroki wasn't…

Toshinori made a point to look for the best in people, even when he'd seen the worst over and over again. Perhaps that was _why_ he looked for the best in his coworkers- to balance out the Villains he stopped so often. Still, Todoroki was _not_ a people person, and didn't like Toshinori much if at all, if one was being honest. He wanted to be number one, he said it often enough whenever they saw each other. His attitude with Toshinori was generally as cold as his flames were hot.

For Todoroki to _demand_ _**his**_ presence in a _hospital_ , where he would be letting Toshinori see him in a state of 'weakness'? Especially considering the last update on Endeavor's condition reported that the number two hero was _unconscious_ and it was unknown when the man would wake up...

Having Sir Nighteye come to him about a call from an old classmate who just so happens to be Endeavor's assigned nurse, a woman who told Nighteye that Endeavor had woken up and _demanded_ to speak to him, it was worrying. Especially when Nighteye added that Shinsou-san had told him that she thought it was serious enough that the woman skipped the business line to the All Might Agency that all hospitals had on record. The description Sir Nighteye repeated, that Todoroki looked like he'd climb out of his hospital bed himself, no matter his injuries, if Toshinori didn't come to him...

Of course Toshinori was going to go, as soon as he could get there.

Endeavor wouldn't have asked for him in anything but the most dire of circumstances.

* * *

Enji fidgets, resisting the urge to get up and pace. His injuries prevent such actions no matter how much he wants to. The exhaustion is dragging at his body but it's been _years_ since Enji has let himself be this still. There's no paperwork, no reports on the war effort, on damages or _casualties_. There's nothing demanding his attention, there isn't a situation that requires his presence and while he isn't ready to confront the _family_ _situation_ , they're _there._

He heaves a frustrated sigh, ignoring the pain the action sends up his spine. It's barely been an hour and he's spent most of that time staring at the door to his room. He wasn't usually someone that fidgeted at all, but well.

The past hours he had been awake had included a _lot_ of firsts.

He wasn't usually someone who had the future of everyone he ever cared about riding on his shoulders either. He figured there were exceptions. Especially in this situation.

He'd been relieved enough to collapse back into his own bed when Shinsou-san had come back and confirmed that All Might would be coming to see him _today_. That was great. The sooner this was dealt with the better. The sooner they could get people moving to deal with the entire mess the better Enji would feel.

Enji initially hesitated before asking Shinsou-san if she could delay informing his wife of his return to consciousness, unless she asked. He also requested that should she ask, to relay to his wife that he was fine and would speak to her as soon as he reported to All Might.

There was... _guilt_. When he thought of his wife. Regret. His actions had been inexcusable and while he would _not_ be repeating them, there was the fact that he _had._ Although, judging by the date, his daughter was only three. Fuyumi hadn't even manifested her Quirk. His second child hadn't even taken his first breath- _yet Enji remembered his last._

The real question was how Enji was going to deal with _explaining_ the whole 'I'm from a desolate future in which you die and leave your adopted son ( _who I am convinced is somehow_ actually _your kid)_ to lead those of us who survive against the successor to All For One'.

 _(A desperate future that reduced places like UA into strongholds and turned what heroes remained into more of a military response team. A future that had honed and sharpened the analytical mind of Midoriya Izuku on war tactics as he was one of the few who had had regular clashes with the Shigaraki and_ lived _-)_

He twitched, his desire to pace increasing the longer he was left alone in the room with his thoughts. He could only be thankful that hospitals had a protocol for 'Hero Business' that would allow him to discuss this entire mess with Toshinori without it being recorded in any way. All rooms were soundproof and quite sturdy. Thus the impending conversation would remain between the two of them. He did _not_ need the staff trying to put him in a psych ward or something similar.

He was going to have enough trouble convincing _All Might_ not to put him in one, and he had personal information he should have no way of knowing without his future knowledge. He ignored the nervous flickers of flames that sparked on his shoulders as he waited. The staff had removed the gown top, leaving him in bottoms after he burned the sixth shirt with the nervous fire flickers he didn't have the mental focus to control. He was too busy focusing on what had happened _(how many of his kids he had seen die-)_ and how he was going to explain it to worry about that.

When the door clicked open after a soft knock with a quiet, rumbling, " _Sorry for intruding."_ Enji tensed both at the painfully familiar voice and the figure of a form he hadn't seen in _years_.

Toshinori had arrived.

* * *

When All Might arrived anywhere, there was, of course, a reaction.

Even at a private hospital that mostly treated Pro-Heroes. It was simply a natural reaction to the presence of the Symbol of Peace anywhere in the public. A living legend who lived up to his legend every day. _(No matter how tiring.)_

Still, the response to him was mild, as it mostly came from the civilian patients and the families waiting for news or simply visiting their loved ones.

Thankfully, All Might was swiftly ushered through the hallways up to the secure wards in the wing mostly reserved for high level heroes. As he was passing one of the windows that overlooked a secure indoor courtyard maintained by a nurse with a plant-based quirk with picnic tables scattered through the greenery meant for Pro-Hero families, he caught a flash of white hair and ice crystals.

He switched his attention, recognizing the woman as Endeavor's wife as she spun ice in her hands for the amusement of what, from this distance, appeared to be a smaller version of her.

Regardless of the tension between the number one and number two, Toshinori was genuinely happy for Enji. Even if he wanted a family, there was too much danger, especially with All for One still lurking in the shadows. Inwardly, Toshinori spared a moment for the grief at the thought of his mentor.

The nurse was already turning around and motioning towards the door they had stopped at, one that bore the name ' _Endeavor / Todoroki Enji_ ' on the plate to the side of the door.

The nurse gave him a professional smile, although it was honestly warm, before she turned on her heel and strolled off, a clipboard in her hand.

All Might waited a moment, trademark smile fixated to his face as he slid open the door.

His first reaction was honest concern. Even as Endeavor's gaze snapped to him, All Might couldn't help the automatic appraisal of the injuries he could see.

His face was littered with healing cuts and what looked like the beginnings of a newly acquired scar peeking out from his hairline above his temple. His chest was bare, wrapped in bandages as it was and All Might could clearly see the faded imprints of fists and hands on his shoulders and arms. As if he has been struck and thrown around by someone with great strength. He had more scars than Toshinori remembered seeing on him.

There were already flames flickering on his forearms and his face, but they were not at the level they usually would be so that meant that Enji was greatly weakened, even if he was sitting up in the hospital bed. On top of that, the flames were flickering in a way they normally wouldn't- a way Toshinori recognized from their days at UA to mean the Flame Hero was _nervous_.

His right arm was carefully supported in a fiberglass cast, but on entering, Enji raised it almost absently in greeting, before he grimaced and put it down.

All Might opened his mouth to speak-

"You suicidal, self-sacrificing _idiot_. Your kid is _exactly_ like you, even if his version of One for All is flashier."

Toshinori closed his mouth at the rapid fire words barked hoarsely at him, before blinking as they registered in his mind. Because _holy shit, what the hell was Enji saying?_

* * *

Enji almost wanted to shove his own hand into his mouth. That was...blunt. And going from the way Toshinori had just tensed and then relaxed in a way Enji _knew_ was fight-ready, rather worrying. Maybe he should have gone with the 'break it to him easy' thing. Deku said Toshinori was better with things being short and to the point, while still being _easy_ on him. Which, how the hell was he supposed to do that?

He pulled in a slightly painful breath, before squaring his shoulders, pretending he couldn't see the nervous flickers of fire on his shoulders and across his nose and cheeks.

"Look, a lot of shit happened, okay? I got sent back in time by your kid, you died a shitty fucking death, the world went to hell in a handbasket, and only a few of us were left to deal with the fallout after the Disaster. All for One survived your first clash with him- which going by the date, you haven't had _yet_ \- chose his successor- which was _your_ mentor's grandkid- and trained him the entire time you thought he was dead."

Enji harshly expelled his breath, reaching his good hand up to pinch the bridge of his nose.

"You chose your successor, who basically became your son, somehow _inherited_ your dumbass sacrificial tendencies even though he's probably _not_ your actual kid. On top of _that_ , your kid is an actual tactical genius and figured out how to send me back in time to save all our god forsaken asses before everything goes to shit. _Again._ "

It was pure word vomit, and Enji hated himself just a little bit. This...was _not_ a good way to convince Toshinori to believe him and _not_ put him in a psych ward.

He snarled, frustration and rage causing his flames to flicker wildly.

"I know it sounds fucking crazy, okay?" Enji waved a sharp hand through the air to cut off whatever Toshinori may or may not have been preparing to say. "So sit your ass in the stupid fucking plastic chair, Toshinori, because I am about to give you information your kid trusted me with to prove I'm not crazy or lying."

He glared at Toshinori until All Might sat down, still puffed up in his muscled form, with his smile frozen somewhat stiffly on his face. Still, the man sat down and wasn't gearing up for a Smash, so…. So far so good?

Enji made no move to tell him to power down. He was already making the blonde a nervous mess with the word vomit, it would be better to let him feel like he still had some control over it. Especially when he started providing information he _should not_ have had at this point without Toshinori ever having told him about it.

Right. Time to poke wounds and personal information of the man who could turn him into a smear on the hospital bed.

It was a good fucking thing Toshinori was such a _hero_ about things. Even things that hurt him.

He wiped a hand down his face hard, ignoring how it trembled, even as his eyes closed. Not only was he _not_ at his best, but he was going to be opening his _own_ wounds and bringing things up he wanted to _forget._ Not that he could. Enji went back to pinching the bridge of his nose. Best start with All For One.

"Okay." he pulled in a deep breath and repeated, " _Okay._ All For One. Crazy fucker who can take and give Quirks to people. Been around since the very beginning of Quirks, about two hundred years- asshole has an immortality Quirk in the mess somewhere, or at least one that keeps him young. Gave his kid brother a stockpiling quirk that fused with his then unknown Quirk allowing him to pass that power down. All the way to you- the eighth holder of the quirk."

There was a look on Toshinori's face that Enji didn't even want to puzzle out exactly what emotions the man was feeling. Still, his ass was firmly on the chair, there was no pressure or a fist drawn back to Smash him, thank kami.

"Did you know the fucker was experimenting with people? He wanted to make a multi-quirk soldier. Called them Noumu, but shoving multiple quirks into one body had rather nasty side effects, as I'm sure you can imagine. Noumu are giant multi-quirk machines with an exposed brain that get pointed at an objective and will single mindedly focus in on that at the command of the one who controls them, mindless in everything but that. Should they be separated from their 'Objective' without being told to hunt it down beforehand or given a longstanding order like 'destroy the city' for example, they become docile until another Commander gets ahold of them and provides new orders."

Enji sighed, waving his good hand almost absent mindedly.

"Those came _mostly_ after you died, but I figured I'd better fucking tell you since they had this grand plan of specifically engineering the beasts to kill you. Especially since your epic grudge match with All For One left the both of you severely injured." Enji leveled a glare to Toshinori's still smiling face, lifting a finger to point accusingly at the number one hero. "Your idiotic ass decided to keep heroing even though you lost a lung, your stomach and your hero form, save for only three and a half hours a day. Looked like a fucking _skeleton_ when not puffed up like this."

Enji gestured to All Might's form, pointedly ignoring how Toshinori's smile seemed more of a grimace the longer he spoke. While he attended UA with one Yagi Toshinori, there was nothing to link All Might to Toshinori, other than the fact that he had set himself up to be his own secretary. All Might's age, Quirk and civilian name were completely unknown to literally everyone, save for a handful of people.

Endeavor pulled himself away from that line of memory and continued, the beginnings of sympathy creeping into his voice.

"All For One found Nana Shimura's grandson, whose Quirk was called 'Decay', and took him in. I have no idea how the asshole knew, or discovered the kid, but he raised the brat to hate you, to take his place. When you got into a fight with All For One over him taking a UA student and _won,_ which lead to you getting him taken into custody...well the kid didn't take that well. Threw a fucking epic fit about it. I guess you could say that's where everything started going _very_ wrong."

Enji scoffed, staring down at his blankets, eyes glazed as he fought to keep his mind in the _now_.

"We thought it would be alright after that. You survived the second grudge match with All For One, the man was in custody, _neutralized_. Shigaraki- the name Nana's grandkid went by- was loose still, but hadn't established himself yet. Seemed more a toddler throwing a tantrum then a threat like All for One was. Unstable and dangerous yes, but manageable. That's when the attacks started. Subtle, small and completely against Shigaraki's MO up to that point. We had no reason to connect the two at the start- could _find_ no reason when we investigated."

Enji could feel his body tensing as he remembered the beginning of the end, though no one had realized it then. His flames flickered in tune to his emotions and he shoved that down, hard and fast. He clenched and relaxed his good hand over and over without thought, breathing through the encroaching panic attack, forcing it back.

He could panic _after._ He had a goal to complete first. Panic never did anyone any good. Most of the time. This was not that time.

"Subtle and annoying attacks grew slowly into more elaborate and dangerous strikes. We thought the attacks to be linked to the League of Villains, perhaps the one they called Kurogiri planning the strikes. He had seemed more a follower in previous encounters, but clever and subtle enough as well as high enough in the chain of command to manage what was happening. We were struggling to deal with it, as the attacks got more and more violent."

Enji shook his head, shoving the voices down, tightening his hold on the _now_ by focusing on the _alive and healthy_ version of Toshinori in front of him. There was something like horror and disbelief in the line of his shoulders and in the way his smile seemed to be fading the longer Enji spoke.

"We- Shigaraki's first _big_ move, aside from the attacks we hadn't yet linked to him with proof, was an attack specifically on the top ten. Dead...murdered and left in the open like some sort of twisted show. Broken and left to _live_ and see the horror unable to aide the way they had. Family targeted, friends killed… Shigaraki was as through as he was merciless. We couldn't save them all."

Enji had to stop there for a moment and just _breathe_ , struggling to keep himself from setting the room on fire. He hadn't struggled this much was quirk control since he was a teen.

 _Enji had been out of the city when the first reports came in, about Gang Orca found dead in the city center, strung up like some kind of offering to a god. He'd been tracking a lead on Shigaraki that turned out to be a false trail._

 _He'd been on the way home when the next report came in, about Ryukyu found alive, but permanently out of commision for any sort of hero work._

 _By the next report he was coming back to the city, the entire population terrified and scrambling to figure out how to stop it all, every single one of them looking at_ him _to stop it as their new Number One-_

"-ji? _Holy shit_ \- Enji, _breathe!"_

Enji sucked in a pained breath as Toshinori's palm came down on his back, careful of his still healing ribs but firm enough to pull his attention outwards.

"Oh _fuck_ ," he wheezed, " _Shit_. Fucking hell."

He sucked in another stuttering breath, his arms curling into his chest as he trembled and breathed through the screams ringing in his ears. His training asserted itself now that he'd been knocked out of the flashback, forcing his body to automatically inhale and exhale as evenly and deep as his ribs would allow.

It was only going to get worse from here. He kept his gaze down. He wasn't going to be able to look at Toshinori. The bright blue and vibrant red of his costume couldn't be ignored as All Might was hovering by the side of his bed. But the man himself could be. Even though Enji was absurdly grateful for the large hand that Toshinori had on his back.

 _(How many times had_ _ **he**_ _been the grounding hand to children, how many times had he listened as they reported the horrors they'd faced on the field as everything spiraled down_ _ **down**_ _down- his_ _ **children-**_ _)_

"He took out most of them in one way or another. It was in the aftermath that Shigaraki broke into the 'secure' containment faculty to release All For One. We couldn't stop him. _**I**_ couldn't stop him."

Enji couldn't stop his hand from moving to one of his nastier scars, five pits in the side of stomach, above his hip where five fingers had grazed him just enough. Shouto and Deku had been the ones to save him, even though they weren't supposed to be there at all.

"And once All For One was free and working with Shigaraki? With all his contacts and resources readily available?"

Enji shook his head, huffing a derisive laugh. The sound wretched itself from his chest and it _hurt._ So did his next words.

"You died then. Taken before we could do anything to stop it, killed and left in the open for the public, for _us_ , to find. It...wasn't a painless death, Toshi. Not even a little. All For One and Shigaraki...they wanted you to _hurt_ before you died, beyond what your current condition did to you. It was obvious they succeeded."

Enji was shaking. He couldn't stop it. Didn't even bother to try really, just focused on his breathing instead. On keeping his flames down and low. It would be so easy to burn the hospital to the ground. But he wouldn't allow himself the release. Talking was supposed to be therapeutic, wasn't it? _(He didn't want to talk about what they had found, how They had torn at Toshi starting from his scar and working their way out-_

 _How Deku had_ _ **screamed**_ _when he saw-)_

"Public morale took a hit, there was a lot of faith lost in the heroes. Your kid was _devastated_." _Mine was too,_ Enji doesn't say. He can't _go there._ "Your students were infuriated- and heartbroken." Enji laughed and it was glass in his throat and noises he would never unhear. Memories that would haunt him even beyond death, he was sure.

"You picked a hell of a kid, I'll give you that one, Toshi. I've never seen anything like it. Izuku...once he managed to pull himself through the initial devastation….he was _determined_ to be the pillar you intended him to be. Kid was a tactical genius with a heart of solid fucking gold, matched by an unshakable will and the loyalty and trust of his friends. He went out there, he _smiled_ at every single civilian he saved, even when he was breaking inside, he knocked down operation after operation and his class- _your students_ \- backed him every step of the way."

 _My son fought by his side and kept him alive, safe,_ Enji doesn't say.

"He stepped up when others couldn't figure out how to work around Shigaraki and All For One working together. He pulled his friends, his classmates and Pros alike into a war council and he _plotted._ He was _determined_ to see his friends make it out alive, and make sure you could 'rest in peace, because I am here'." Enji inhaled and it was more a sob then any intake of air.

All Might was standing so still by his bed. The hand on his back didn't shake.

His eyes clenched shut and he hunched over himself, his good hand rising to clutch over his heart. It had taken years of work, from the moment he had become Number One and promised his son to become a hero he could be proud of, all the way up to the shared trauma of most Pros getting killed or crippled, and All Might dying, but _damn it_.

The bonds with his family were being reforged into something _better_. UA had become a stronghold, the teachers became his friends, and the kids were _his kids_.

Every. Fucking. One.

He'd fought Noumu for them, and he'd do it again, cared for them, fought _beside_ them. Saved and been saved by them. How could he not have considered them his own at that point?

The end of an era, desperation, hope, and trauma had a way of bring people together, especially when you were all that was left to protect the rest of the world.

Enji shook his head, and when he spoke it was mostly a sob. His voice _cracked_ before he forced it flat, as if he was reciting a report.

"Everything spiraled out of control. Heroes dying faster than we could stop, which forced the _students_ to take to the front lines, as civilians were getting caught up in villain plots and going missing. Noumu being released into bigger cities, leaving rubble in their wake and the people unable to _fix_ any of it, because the attacks were so intense and constant with the hero presence stretched so thin it _wasn't safe to..._ We…"

Enji covered his face with his good hand and _quaked_ with the intensity of his emotions. The hand on his back spasmed and the pressure increased, almost in comfort. It took him a few minutes to continue.

"It was a desperate gamble really, but what choice did we have? All For One and Shigaraki were cutting our numbers down, fear ran almost out of control in the civilians, Noumu just kept getting _more_ refined as time passed, people had their quirks ripped away, showing back up as husks of themselves. Or corpses."

Enji's voice dropped to a pained whisper.

"There were so few of us left by the time they sent me back…We gathered in one place to give me the chance. Izuku said it had to be _me._ I didn't- _don't_ \- deserve the chance to fix it, but here I am. He said I would be the only one of them with the clot to _do something_ about what I knew, one of the few who could get ahold of you and actually have you _come_. It was too much of a tempting target for All For One and Shigaraki- we knew it would be- and a fight broke out. It's where I got all of," Enji made an encompassing motion at his own body, " _this_. Our desperate gamble _worked_."

Enji jerked his body up into a sitting position, straight backed and serious, eyes _burning_ as he stared into deep set blue on black. His lips pulled back in a challenging snarl without thought as he finished, "Here you are, Toshi. And I swear to every fucking kami there is or was, I _will_ _ **not**_ let that future happen again. I _can't, All Might."_

 _(He can't watch his daughter scream, his son- Kodai- Dabi who threw away his name- the one he'd forced out of the house though his actions- lunging to save her, can't watch Shouto_ _ **scream**_ _as he gets caught in the middle of it all-_

 _Can't watch as Uravity- Ochako- lunged forward, her hands extended and a snarl on her face as she stops entire_ _ **buildings**_ _worth of rubble from crushing her friends, turning the mortar and steel against the horde of Noumu, screaming when they get to her, but_ _ **holding the rubble up until she**_ **can't** _-_

 _Aizawa- Shouta- screams at them all that he would deal with villains, just_ _ **go**_ _, in some twisted mirror of the USJ incident before everything, and Enji_ has _to leave, even with all the Noumu swarming because_ he's _the one going back-_

 _Deku- Izuku- twisting around and peeling away from his side to meet All For One and Shigaraki themselves, Ingenium-Tenya- and Present Mic- Hizashi- at his sides with the rest of his class fanning behind him. Deku screaming at him_ **save us** _and shoving him forwards a promise on his lips that no one would stop Enji because '_ **I am here-'**

* * *

Toshinori had been _completely_ set to do- _something_ when Enji started talking about people and secrets he had no business knowing. Perhaps if he hadn't opened the conversation with 'I'm from the future' implication and then outright _saying_ 'I've come _back_ ' Toshinori wouldn't have heard him out.

But Endeavor said One For All.

Quirks were versatile and shocking things. It was so unlikely as to be laughable, but not... _impossible_.

Still...if Enji hadn't opened the conversation with dropping the name of his Quirk like it was _no big deal_ , Toshinori would have done something rash, because the only other person besides himself and Gran Torino who knew the secrets Enji was telling him was _All For One_ himself.

But people couldn't _fake_ the sort of utter loathing in Enji's eyes and body language when he spoke of that man.

And as he shared information about his supposed death, successors- both his own and- apparently- All For One's, Toshi found himself utterly still.

His _mentor's grandson_ -

Gran Torino had known Nana's kid, but as she made them promise, they had both stayed out of his life, even when All For One had dealt Nana a crippling injury. Even during her forced retirement, his mentor had refused to change her mind concerning her family. Nana had told them the day Tenko had been born, a devastated and joyous look clashing on her thin face as she choked, 'I'm a grandma now- his name is Tenko."

Toshinori thought it may have been a broken heart that took her then. She hadn't made it past Tenko's first month before she passed away. Doctor's swore it was the injuries catching up to her body, but Toshi knew. Toshi knew better, knew his mentor. If she's _wanted_ to, she could have fought to stay, as she had been for the months after their big clash.

When Nana died, it took time to find her son and his family. Nana called in favors and did everything in her power to completely separate her son from anything connected to Shimura Nana. When Gran Torino and Toshinori had finally put enough information together, Tenko would have been nearly three. They were too late though. Nana's son and his wife had died, while their own son was put into foster care.

Gran Torino and Toshinori had looked into the child only long enough to ensure he lived, and that his existence was hidden more than his parents had been.

 _No one_ else had known about the grandson. No one but Nana, Torino, and himself.

But Enji knew.

 _Enji knew._

That 'from the future' bit was making more and more sense.

Which made what Enji continued to speak about even more horrifying. A second fight with All For One, _students_ being involved- and _he could not believe_ he was a teacher. Apparently.

Toshinori shifted uncomfortably in the tiny plastic chair as he watched Enji's face. He could _see_ memories swirling in the Flame Hero's eyes and they were dark and dangerous things.

Toshi can feel his heart _twist_ , and he feels the automatic smile he can't help but wear in this form shift and twist into more and more of a horrified grimace as he listens. As he hears the beginnings of open war laid out, obvious in only the way hindsight- as Enji has- can make them.

Toshi tracks Enji's flames and hands automatically. His stomach turns at the open display of flickering flames, scarred eyes, and a clenching fist. It's obvious Enji isn't even thinking about it as his nails dig into his palm and release over and over again.

He listens to Enji force his breathing even, and Toshinori can't move.

He believes him.

 _He believes_ _him_. Trusts in his instincts, which look at the emotion in Endeavor's eyes and body, and screams _truth_. Instincts that take in the information Enji has no conceivable way of knowing without Toshinori's own say so. All the things he says that he _doesn't_ know.

( _A_ _ **son**_ _,_ _a voice weeps in the back of his mind.)_

Still he can't stop him.

Endeavor- Enji- looks like he _needs_ this, and he had called All Might for help without hesitation. Toshinori can do nothing but provide it. It's only muscle memory that has even the vaguest of smiles on his face as he stares down his self-proclaimed rival.

Enji meets his gaze, and there's _war_ in the Flame Hero's eyes. Anger, horror and a desperate, _longing_ hope. Toshinori's stomach drops to his feet as he listens, eyes widening despite his struggle for control as Endeavor lays out the loss of hero after hero, psychological attacks on the minds of the public and his future students.

He leans back just a bit at the surge of flames across Enji's arms and shoulders, down his back and over his nose. He can hear Enji struggling to breathe evenly. It sounds painful- _feels_ painful even to himself. It takes Toshinori a moment to register when the forced even breathing changes.

It stutters first, jerks and stalls, and then it _stops_.

Toshinori surges to his feet, and Enji doesn't react to it, his chest eerily still and his eyes black and staring.

" _Holy shit!_ " The English swear slips out of his mouth without a second thought even as he rushes closer to the man.

"Endeavor? Hey, hey, Todoroki-kun come on! Breathe!"

Nothing.

Toshi reaches forward, without hesitation and rubs at Enji's back. He notes the flames lose their heat when he touches them, but otherwise Enji isn't reacting. Isn't _breathing_ , and Toshi is starting to panic a little. _What on Earth is he supposed to do in this situation?_

"Todoroki-kun come on, you need to breathe! I'm going to call a nurse if you don't calm down! Come on, please?" He pats at Endeavor's back- _gently, because Toshinori is still so much stronger than everyone-_ and still there's nothing that gives him the impression that number two can even hear him.

"Enji!" He hits the Flame Hero's back a bit harder, careful of the wounds, and he's getting ready to reach for the call button, but he tries one last time. There's a response, a breathless _wheeze_ , but a response.

"Enji? _Holy shit_ \- Enji, _breathe!"_ His voice is firm despite the panic edging at it, and his palm comes down on Enji's back a bit firmer than the last.

Endeavor sucks in a pained breath, and Toshi almost collapses in place as the wheezing curses escape from the man's lips. The harsh, spitting curses fall steady from his mouth and it's _practiced_ yet Toshinori has literally never heard this man speak with anything other than the rigid, almost cold formality he's well known for.

Toshi's heart twists in place, his belief in Enji's story solidifying even farther as the proud man curls into himself and _forces_ his breathing even, like he has practice with it. Like it's an ingrained response.

He keeps his hand on Enji's back a steady and grounding pressure on his spine. He notices immediately that Enji isn't looking at him, but he says nothing. He can let the man have this. He doesn't mention the shivers wracking the other man's frame, doesn't comment on the way he leans into the hand at his back just a bit.

Toshi is very, very careful to keep his hand steady even as he allows his face- Enji isn't looking at him, _won't_ look at him- to twist with the horror he can feel clawing at his gut. All For One gets free as the country scrambles to recover from heavy loss.

His eyes track Enji's hand as it presses into the bare skin at his side, over a scar- _there are so many scars-_ and his stomach heaves. He forces his face under control, just in case Enji glances up at him, even as he continues to listen and have his belief in Enji's tale grow.

He flinches subtly, his palm just as steady and still as it has been, as he hears the disdainful laugh claw its way out of Enji's throat, like everything he had ever held steady had shattered under him and he had survived the fall.

He listens to the tale of his death, and it's an odd clash of feelings. It's _him_ Enji is talking about, but it hasn't happened, and it's the strangest combination of phantom aches, and horror, a twist of nausea- _he's going to be sick-_ and the determination to be the anchor Enji so clearly needs right now.

He's shaking under Toshinori's palm even as he leans into it, and Toshi increases the pressure applied just a little, making an absent humming noise he's not sure Enji hears at all. He does it anyway, an effort to ground himself and Enji both.

Toshi tries not to flinch when he listens to the effects his death had on the world, but especially on the boy he had not yet met, not yet chosen. ( _Enji keeps calling the boy his_ _ **son**_ ) He remembered well the agony of Nana dying, and he'd known it was coming, she'd died in a hospital, _yes_ , but they had all known it was coming at some point. She wasn't alone.

His successor hadn't had that. He'd found Toshinori strug up and obviously tormented before death. Toshinori swallows hard, multiple times, on the bile that wants to crawl up his throat. He forces his own breathing even past the low hum he was still making.

He needs to focus- needs to give Enji an anchor- and he's always done his best when _someone else_ needed him to their rock. Enji needed that, and _Toshi_ needed to be needed right then as he listened to the living version of hell that Enji had come back from.

He feels a faint stirring of pride for the child he hasn't yet met, even amongst the horror that this Izuku had _needed_ to lead a war, and be a tactical genius, as Enji called him. He sounds like exactly that kind of person Toshi would want to be the Ninth. _(-exactly like a son he could be proud of-)_

His heart _breaks_ with the sobbed confession that sounds like a quote, of his student telling him to 'rest in peace' and he thinks he might join Enji in shedding tears-

-but not yet.

Not yet, Endeavor needs a rock, needs a steady thing to fall back against, and Toshi was the person he'd chosen for it. He could sob and scream and throw up when he was alone.

He could _react_ when he wasn't the only person holding Enji together.

He kept his hand steady on Enji's back, pressed against the man's spine a firm grounding pressure increased when needed. A comfort as the Flame Hero broke in a way that would leave its own marks on Toshinori.

And so they come full circle, Enji laying out how his _brilliant_ successor _(-son?-)_ gave the man a chance to _go back_ and make sure nothing like this horror ever happened again. There are moments when Enji pauses, as if there's something _more_ to what happened, in this future he's lived, before he continues and Toshinori cannot help but be _relieved_. He doesn't want to hear how bad it was. _This_ was bad enough, and if it was the _watered-down_ version, Toshi will take it.

He thinks _this_ will be taking the number one spot for 'weird things that have happened to me'.

There are periods in a person's life that shift how they define them. Moments that get labeled 'Before' and 'After'. _Before_ Toshinori met Nana, and _After_ she saved him. _Before_ he received One for All, and _After_ when he could fight to save everyone. _Before_ Nana died and _After_ Toshinori lost one of his own pillars.

 _Before_ and _After._

Moments like this one.

 _Before_ Enji Todoroki looked him in the eye and snarled like was challenging the world-

"Here you are, Toshi. And I swear to every fucking kami there is or was, I _will_ _ **not**_ let that future happen again. I _can't, All Might."_

-and _After_ when Yagi Toshinori- _All Might_ \- meets Enji's stare and answers in a voice so confident and _hard_ :

"I won't let it happen either. I believe you, and I'll help you change this future."

Enji closes his eyes and lets himself _hope._


	3. Chapter 3

Relief.

It's...almost _painful_ how intense the feeling is. Almost agony how muscles Enji hadn't even noticed were tense release. How his _mind_ relaxes for the first time in longer than Enji can even remember.

 _Toshinori believes him._

 _All Might_ has sworn to help him _stop_ everything. They were united in this goal, and Enji feels like he can _do this_ for the first time. He would have seen this done one way or another, would have fought the world to save it, to save _them_ , would have destroyed himself _(-so he never ever had to hear his kids scream, had to watch them_ _ **die**_ _ever again-)_ to do it, but Toshinori _believes him_.

Enji laughs and it's a sob. He hunches over and brings his good hand up to cover his eyes, tucking the cast to his chest and he _sobs_.

He's so _thankful_.

He won't have to watch _Shouto-Fuyumi-Kodai-Shouta-Izuku-Katsuki-HisKids-_ die. Won't have to watch the world burn around him, watch people he had gotten to know and trust be murdered. He won't ever see the days where they were forced to hunker behind the walls of UA, watch his kids drag each other back to the once-school with blood dripping from their bodies.

He won't ever have to cremate another lost brother in arms, another _child_ forced to fight for their life who _failed to come back-_

"Enji!"

Endeavor sucks in a breath, focusing sharply on Toshi's voice.

"Sorry," he rasps. "I just…"

Toshinori shakes his head. "It's fine, Todoroki-kun. I just- I didn't want to let you have another flashback."

Enji stills. _Todoroki-kun_. It sounds so... _impersonal_ when All Might says it like that. He clears his throat and speaks somewhat awkwardly.

"You...can call me Enji. We're going to save the world together after all." He pauses another moment, "Ah- sorry. The kids all called you _Toshi_ in the future. I suppose it carried over." He lowers his eyes, squinting against more tears as he thinks about Izuku and his classmates.

"It's fine, Enji. I don't mind."

Enji lifts his head at the voice, and settles himself more firmly into his inclined bed. Deku had warned him about the unexpected side effects of time travel. Especially since there hadn't been any recorded instances. Apparently that included unstable emotions.

"Thanks. Which brings me to the cover story we'll have to tell. I can't tell anyone else the truth- who'd believe me? I don't have personal future knowledge for everyone to prove it. I'd end up locked away pending psychological evaluation- there's no way I would be able to pass that, and then I would be unable to help prevent what had happened. I refuse to let that happen. I owe too much to your boy to let that happen. Owe to much to _my_ children to let that happen."

Toshinori nodded. If Enji hadn't have very specific information to prove his claims, Toshinori isn't sure he would have believed him either.

"Did you have something in mind?" All Might inquired.

Enji frowns at his lap for a moment before he speaks, slowly laying out his cover story.

"I didn't get a very good look at him at all. Whoever he was, he came out of the flames as if they had no effect on him. He screamed my name when he saw me- like I was his _target_. For a moment...I couldn't move. Couldn't _breathe._ It was almost like the fire in the forest burned the oxygen out of the air around me. I only managed to breathe when I used my own flames to fight his. I fought my way to him, and managed to get close- and he threw me around like I weighed nothing. Gave me all of these," Enji gestured to his own body, carefully not thinking about the Noumu he was talking about, the one that All For One had made specifically with Endeavor in mind.

 _(It had been a mismatch of quirks, regeneration, strength, and fire manipulation. Any fire it had touched or been in contact with would become its play thing. Enji had only gotten away because Shouta and Shouto had worked together to give him an opening with Izuku. He'd almost killed them when the Noumu had forced his flames heat up until they turned blue-white.)_

"This man- it was like he had complete control over fire- even mine to an extent. Having encountered his quirk up close, I think _he_ was the one to set the fire, no matter the official cause being listed as a lightning strike. It seemed that whatever fire this villain came into contact with was his to control. Just being close allowed some pull, but once he actually touched the flames..." Enji's mouth twists as the story plays out in his mind, blending with memories.

"As soon as it left my body, it was something he could manipulate if I wasn't concentrating. He used the fire in the forest to hide his form from me, keep any identifying features from view. I was so busy trying to keep myself alive and the fire under control since he kept trying to distract me with the civilians, by spreading the flames towards the barrier line…"

Enji looks up at a surprised Toshi, continuing with the 'official' report that will be going into the records.

"I couldn't stop him from catching the forest around us on fire, and I took my eyes off of him for a second, just to see how close the fire was getting to the barrier. That was...that was when it all went wrong."

Enji shook his head, lifting his hands and activating his Quirk to flicker over his hands and curl over his neck.

"I reached for the flames he had caused, and it was like...the moment I touched _his_ fire, he had a grip on _mine_. He was trying to make me burn us _all_ to the ground, and I refused. That was when my fires turned blue- he was trying to make me burn down the entire forest, and everyone around it. I fought him, fought to get close enough to _fight_ him if my quirk would be turned against me like that. Only the closer I got the harder my flames were to control and the hotter they grew."

Enji scowled heavily, his expression darkening.

"He got away. He used my Quirk against me, set the fires so hot I had no choice but to stop and work to aim the blaze in a way that didn't end with someone dead. I couldn't stop my flames from getting hotter, but I could direct it somewhat. I don't know what he looked like, or where he went, but as soon as I was sure he was gone I worked my way to the barrier and here we are."

When Enji looks up, All Might has an expression on his face that he cannot quite identify. He raises his eyebrow, allowing his confusion to plainly show.

"Enji," Toshi asks seriously, his voice suspiciously quiet for his All Might persona. "That sounds...very specific. Like something that actually happened and you're simply rearranging the details to fit this current situation."

Enji scowled and let his eyes drop from Toshinori's. Izuku had always said that Toshi was very observant when it came to _people_.

Enji hated that Izuku had been right.

"That's because it _is,_ " Enji said wearily, "There was a Noumu that All For One kept refining every time I fought it. It had super regeneration, a strength boost, and the fire manipulation quirk. If All For One knew I was going to be there, in a fight, that Noumu was always present. I almost-"

A pause in his words, a moment of stillness, then- a breath.

"I almost killed my friends, my _kids_ , in that battle. I went off like some supernova firework, so hot I burned a solid white. The only thing that saved everyone was a combination of my son's ice and my own determination to redirect it."

Fists clenched in white hospital sheets and his heart skips a beat simply in remembrance.

"If the flames hadn't originally been _mine_ , I don't think I would have been able to stop anything. If the Noumu had possessed the brainpower to strategize, and used a random fire against us rather then my _own_ Hellfire...We very well may have died anyway."

Toshinori looks concerned. It's a very genuine emotion on the broad, defined lines of the features of his hero form.

The fool was always willing to bleed emotions all over the place, always willing to bear the burden, yet when it came to himself, the man's ability to keep his mental, emotional and physical state _healthy_ was significantly lowered. Enji scowled, his mind latching onto his line of thought as a distraction. He'd make sure the idiot was alive and _healthy_ by the time he met Izuku. He'd support him, act as a steady support at his back, would take some of the weight off his shoulders. He'd seen in the Future how much _more_ effective teamwork between the top heroes had been. It would be years ahead of the last time, but Enji would work _with_ Toshi and the others this time.

 _(He had promised Shouto to be a hero his son could be proud of, and he_ would _be even if this Shouto would never_ need _that promise from his lips.)_

Even if he had to burn All For One out of existence.

It wasn't like that would be a hardship- _the bastard had killed his children, and so many of the kids he had come to care for over his time in UA, fighting the man. It was All for One that had made Izuku's eyes harden and darken with shadows. All for One that had seen Shouto, Fuyumi, Natsuo and Kodai_ _ **dead-**_

Enji breathes, narrowing his mind down to the unshaking palm still on his spine. They weren't dead. Most of them hadn't even been _born_ yet.

 _He had time_.

It would be okay. Enji's lips twitched towards an ironic grin. It would be okay, because _he_ was _here_.

"I'm alright," he reassures Toshinori- who doesn't look like he believes him- "It'll be fine. It'll be okay, we're going to change it all," he says and if the sheer _relief_ he feels at that truth bleeds into his voice, Enji doesn't fight it.

He lifts his eyes to stare into black-on-blue. "Thank you, Toshinori."

He deliberately uses All Might's actual name, because he's not thanking the Symbol, he's thanking the _man_ , and he hopes it carries over in his voice.

There's a still and silent moment, where they two men stare at each other, and then Toshinori smiles at him, soft and genuine with understanding in his gleaming eyes. "You are welcome, Enji."

Enji lets himself fall back against the bed, exhaling harshly even as he let himself relax for the first time in almost too long to remember.

 **LINEBREAK**

There's the soft sound of breathing that drags him out of a vaguely restful sleep. A murmur of almost familiar voices and he finds himself frowning. The voices cease and he can feel a cool touch on his heated skin. The murmur turns into a recognizable voice.

 _Rei…?_

"-roki-san?"

Enji feels his lips curl into a snarl at the lack of response of his body to his command. The hand on his arm spasms but does not withdraw. The last voice speaks again and this time Enji is able to hear what's being said.

"Todoroki-san? Can you hear me?"

It takes more effort than he would like to admit, but Enji manages to force his eyes open, regardless of the way the light half blinds him. He grimaces as his lids flutter, but he breathes deeply, against the pain in his ribs, allowing that to bring some clarity to his mind.

His lips are cracked and his throat is dry and he spares a moment to wonder exactly _how long_ he's been sleeping before his sight clears up and he finds himself staring at his wife, much younger than the last time he laid eyes on her.

"Rei?"

His voice is hoarse and he can hear the confusion plainly in his tone. That confusion increases as something like surprise washes over her face, before her expression settles into something like tentative softness, easing the lines around her mouth into something like a smile. His wife leans closer, bright strands of hair sliding over her shoulder to brush against his forearm.

Enji breaths in the subtle fragrance of cherry blossoms and a sharp wintery scent of cedar that always lingers on Rei. His fingers fist against the sheets of his bed and after a moment, Rei's hand slides down to carefully cover his.

For a moment, Enji almost brings himself to speak. Anything at all, an apology she won't understand, not really, some sort of promise to do better, or even to ask about their children. His only daughter and his first son, one barely out of infancy and the other still in his mother's womb. What could he say? What words would even begin to fix this?

"Todoroki-san, how are you feeling?"

His gaze slips from his wife, to his nurse. Shinsou-san leveling a look of vague concern and professionalism towards him, clipboard firmly in her hands. He ignores the question, asking one of his own instead.

"What... _happened_?"

Shinsou-san doesn't cringe, not quite, but there is something about her that conveys something like shame or regret.

"You relapsed, Todoroki-san. You slipped back into unconsciousness for another three days. Further tests have been done and while we cannot find anything _specifically_ wrong with you, your body is under some kind of strain."

Enji blinked, slowly and deliberately.

Well. Deku had mentioned side-effects.

"From what we've managed to gather, you used a great deal of energy, both form your Quirk and from your body so much that it exhausts you to the point where your systems shut down to tire and build your energy back up. However, you aren't using any energy beyond basic body functions and the passive abilities of your Quirk so we are at a loss as to why this has occurred."

Enji closes his eyes while exhaling sharply. The fingers covering his own tighten. The next moment Endeavor forces his eyes open, his head up and pushes himself into an upright position. It's a smooth motion, he gives no gasps nor muffled sounds of pain, yet Rei surges to her feet and Shinsou-san lunges forward.

He twists his hand around, wrapping his fingers around his wife's wrist and holds it there. She stiffens, her shoulders tensing and her gaze automatically skittering away from his. Shinsou-san doesn't notice, but he does. It...hurts. His heart skips a beat and regret clogs his throat. Still, he clears it, and turns his attention to his nurse.

"Shinsou-san," he says formally, softly yet unyielding. "I require a moment with my wife."

There's a pause in her movements before the worry and the vague hint of frustration slides from her face. Something like an understanding smile touches her lips and she pulls back, heading for the door with sure steps.

"Of course, Todoroki-san. Please, do not hesitate to call should you require my services."

He doesn't answer, he's already turning his focus to Rei as she stands by his bedside, her wrist still in his grip. For a moment, there is silence in the room and Enji desperately wishes he knew what to do, what to say, but nothing comes to mind.

The familiar dread and anger rise up, but he forcibly shoves that down. He can't be angry for this. Things are tense between them. He hasn't hurt her, hasn't broken whatever fragile thing they once had. He hasn't made demands of her, hasn't spat biting words in her face nor put her down at every perceived mistake.

She is wary and cautious. But still willing, still hopeful in a happy ending, in a good life.

So Enji starts by gently tugging her wrist towards him, but he lets go before she even takes a step forward. Her eyes swing back to his, but he's already turning away to the windows.

"Please," he says to his wife of barely half a decade, this brilliant, beautiful woman he hasn't seen in _years_. "Please, sit."

There's a pause before the mattress dips and he can feel the coolness of her presence brushing against his own warmth. Silence again falls as Enji struggles with words and concepts and explanations he has no idea how to even _begin_ to share with her.

The anger is there, comforting in it's familiarity. But he doesn't need that now. He needs the painful truth, the blunt honesty that he never seems to be able to say to anyone of importance. But he'll not suffer the future his actions, his anger and unwillingness to bend or to simply _speak_ will bring.

So Enji takes a breath and begins.

"I don't- I'm not... _good_ … with saying the right things," he starts out and already he's stuttering and fumbling for words and for a moment he _hates_ , and his flames react, flickering in tune with his emotions. The crisp scent of cold water momentarily disappears and Enji _slams_ those emotions back into the corners of his mind.

His flames settle and he takes another breath.

"I've come to a realization," he says because _he has_ and _Rei needs to know_. "That I have been, in short, a shit husband."

 _Communication is important_ , someone whispers from dark memories, _maintain eye contact to convey your sincerity._

So Enji shifts until his wife can look at him, turns so he can see the expressions on her face.

It's one of a stunned disbelief. Wide eyes, parting lips, a breath held followed by several rapid blinks. This is encouraging because she's still by his side, so Enji forges on.

"Also a shit father, a shit hero and just generally a shit person. I am going to apologize for that, and then I am going to be better at-", Enji lifts an arm to motion between the two of them, carefully as it's still slightly broken, "this thing. Communication. Our marriage."

Rei takes a breath and it shakes. Her hands are folded in her lap and she's clutching them tightly, enough that her skin is taut. She doesn't say anything so Enji speaks to fill the silence and the understanding he's trying to impart.

"I chose you," Enji begins again and says what he has never spoken aloud in his entire life, "for your Quirk, as I know you are aware. But that isn't the whole of it. I _married you_ for your morals, your strength of character and your intelligence. You were _kind._ "

There's a glimmer in grey eyes and he cannot _do this_ while _looking at her_. He can't help the way his flames draw in, closer to his skin and how his gaze shifts away. He can feel the familiar brush of heat that crawls up his body but he grits his teeth and ignores it.

"I chose you," Enji says again, "because out of all the candidates I found, all the riches and prestige that could have accompanied the other women with wind or enhancements or physical traits to their Quirks, it was _you_ that drew my eye, that caught my interest. A nobody from a barely middle class family. I married you because I knew I could live comfortably with you. I wanted children, I already knew, but that was just a vague concept until I met you and _imagined them._ "

Rei's breath hitches in the silence and in his head, Enji swears and calls himself _coward_ in a spitting, biting voice that sounds exactly like his youngest son.

"I didn't- It hadn't-" Enji stumbles over a revelation years in the making and _oh_ , the regret _burns_ in his chest. "It did not occur to me that my comfort and ease at your presence in my life was not shared by you. It did not occur to me that my thoughts and feelings on matters important to me were not as clear as I imagined them to be and that they actually needed to be spoken."

As far as Rei is concerned, Enji had _bought her_ and then regretted that decision but was stuck in seeing it to the end and he got what he wanted. Which, wasn't entirely true but not completely false and Enji, at this moment in time, with all his memories and the knowledge of _what he did_ is _ashamed_ of his actions _._ In the past he lived, when he first married Rei, it was for all those reasons. Somewhere it changed and he saw no problem with it. But _here_ , in this time no such things has happened. Things can be better if he makes an effort.

So he turns back to his wife. There are tears in her eyes, her lips are tightly pressed together and there's ice faintly manifesting on the tips of her fingers. Enji hesitantly reaches out, slow enough that she can easily avoid his touch if she choses. He pauses before he lays his hand over hers, his natural heat already melting the frost the clings to her skin.

"I am _sorry._ "

And _gods_ he is. He _is_. It has taken him years, war and death and _destruction._ It has taken him loss and defeat, the realization that his children _loathed_ him for what he had done and said and _not_ said. It has taken him standing at the top, and looking around, _realizing_ how lonely it was, before everything went to _shit_ before he had realized.

Before he had _remembered_.

He had not _always_ been the way that he was. There had been a time he looked at a kind, powerful, steady presence in Rei and thought ' _I can be happy with her.'_ There had been a time where he wanted children for _children's sake_ rather than a Quirk Marriage end goal. There had been a time that Enji wanted _family_.

He'd forgotten.

In his endless obsession with being the best, he had lost sight of what was _important._

Looking into wide grey eyes, he _remembers_. He had learned, in blood and tears, agony and _loss_ exactly what he wants from his life. From _this_ life, this second chance.

He wants Rei and his children to be happy. He wants Toshi and Deku to be happy. He wants a _family_ and a _home_ not a house that he shared with his blood. He wants class 1-A to flourish and guide the world when his time comes to an end. He wants All for One to never be able to rise to the position of power he had once had.

He _wants_ a better future.

And he'll have it.

He will have it even if he has to _burn the world to the ground_ and rebuild it in ashes. He'll have it for the grey eyes staring at him with a blooming flicker of desperate hope, and the shaking grip she returns to hold his hand.

Enji sits in his hospital bed with scars from battles he never fought and a wife who will never suffer under his hands as she once did in a life that will never be lived. Somewhere there is his daughter, his firstborn who doesn't know the pain and heartbreak of a father who threw her away because her Quirk wasn't good enough. His tiny three year old daughter who will now grow up fully aware that her father loves her.

There are tears pricking the corners of his eyes, but Enji ignores them and sits in silence, holding his wife's hand and fervently hoping he will be strong enough to grasp destiny in his hands and destroy what might be.


	4. Chapter 4

Enji hadn't braced himself for the sight of his first born.

It wasn't that he didn't _know_ Fuyumi was there, that he didn't realize that she was only three and tiny. No, the thing that Enji hadn't been ready for was the _love_ in her eyes when she first saw him. The love and the worry and the _joy_.

He hadn't seen those emotions from _any_ of his children in so long, he hadn't even…

But when Fuyumi rushed into his hospital room, she had called out, " _Daddy!"_ and dove for the bed, scrambling up the sheets and to his side. Enji hadn't even thought to help the toddler climb up, frozen where he sat as his daughter threw herself into his side, tiny hands gripping at him and bright, teary eyes staring up at him.

And gods, Enji _wasn't ready_ , not even a little.

His hands move without thought as Fuyumi throws herself into his side, ignoring the sharp flare of pain, to wrap around his daughter's _(tiny! She's so small-)_ back.

"Hello, snowflake," Enji whispers, the endearment slips out without thought, as he runs his hand gently through his daughter's red streaked hair. "I missed you."

And by the gods, he _had_. When Enji had _realized_ what he lost, standing across from four children who hated everything that he stood for, their gazes cold and accusing where love and adoration should have flourished. And then they had died in the war efforts, all four of them, at one point or another and-

Enji would _not_ , _could_ not see that happen again.

He'd _**die**_ first.

As Fuyumi digs her little feet into tender hurts, scrambling to get closer, her eyes shining with tears, even as she babbles, "Daddy, Daddy I was _so scared_! You got hurt, are you _okay?_ "

And Enji has to take a deep breath, until his ribs throb with it, and _hold_ because he was _going to cry_ -

"It's okay, snowflake." he breathes the reassurance, and no one says a word if his voice shakes a bit with it. "Da-" Enji's voice breaks, and his throat closes up. He has to clear it twice before he can finish the sentence.

"Daddy's okay," he says quietly, softly, tenderly, "I promise I'm okay."

He lifts his head, leaning back against the pillows and pulling Fuyumi up, towards him, into a hug. His hand is over her head, fingers tangled in her soft hair, as she nuzzles into his chest. He can feel her ear pressing against his heartbeat.

Enji doesn't fight the tears as they slip down his cheeks, staring intently at the ceiling even as the hand not cradling his daughter's head is rubbing her back, and tracking her heart beat.

Tiny fingers are gripping his shirt and he takes a moment to just breathe, coming to terms with the facts of his reality. Fuyumi is alive and _safe_ in his arms. She loves him in the simple way a child loves a parent and he's done _nothing_ to harm that image in her eyes. So he lets his daughter sob into his chest, hiccuping and sniffling, while he does his best to get his own emotions under control.

His gaze tracks slowly over the room, to meet the grey eyes of his wife, and she's staring at him, a hand over her mouth, and tears in her eyes.

Enji does nothing to hide the tears on his cheeks, to wipe them away. Instead he lifts the hand on his daughter's back and slowly reaches for her. He doesn't move, doesn't beckon, but he reaches out and allows Rei the choice. Her hand is still pressed against her mouth, but she takes a slow, shaking step forward and hesitantly reaches out with her other hand.

Enji tugs her forward, gently, into the hug, and closes his eyes as Rei tentatively tucks herself into his side. He takes a deep breath, and it shakes and shutters, but-

But the scent of his family is _there_ and they are _there_ , and they _love him_ , he has not broken them, not shattered what could be, not yet, _not_ _ **ever again.**_

"Daddy's here," Enji whispers, reverent and awed, because he is _allowed_ this, Fuyumi is not disagreeing, not moving away, not _flinching from him._ "Daddy's here. I'm here." he promises solemnly, "I'm here, and everything will be okay. Everything will be-" a deep shaking breath and he nuzzles into his wife's white hair.

"Everything will be _fine._ "

He leans over and gently drops a kiss onto his wife's head. His greatest shame, a regret he never expressed, his sins undone, thanks to his once rival's successor.

 _Never again_ , Enji thinks viciously to himself.

He will make sure of it.

 **LINEBREAK**

When Enji slips back into sleep, actual sleep, not injury or drug induced unconsciousness, Rei gently pulls herself from his arms. She hesitates over Fuyumi's form, tucked protectively under her husband's hand before she quietly sighs and stands up from the hospital bed.

She stops there, staring down at her husband and their daughter. Her husband, who still bares bandages and a cast from his fight against an unknown villain. Who has silvery scars she has never seen on him before, from greater wounds healed by those with quirks in this hospital, she is sure.

Rei gently tugs the blankets on the bed up higher and watches for several moments in silence, gaze carefully searching over her husband's slackened features.

 _Enji had apologized._

More than that- he had looked her in the eye and _meant_ it.

It's like she's looking at an entirely different man, and... _well_. Rei feels a little guilty at the _relief_ she feels, but if _this_ is the result of someone injuring Endeavor to the point where his life was in jeopardy, if Enji has been changed so drastically by this attack...Rei is _glad_. She's _so_ glad. So very relieved and happy and just-

" _...I wanted children, I already knew, but that was just a vague concept until I met you and_ _ **imagined them.**_ "

Rei's breath catches again as her husband's voice echoes in her head, shaking and strained, but ringing with truth.

She...she hadn't thought...Enji had been pleasant enough while courting her, showing her family he would be a good match for her. He'd been up front about choosing an arranged marriage candidate with the intent to strengthen his quirk, but he'd also said he wanted someone he could get along with. That he may have been looking for a wife that could help his children be stronger, but he'd wanted more than that. He'd been a bit...cold, yes, but...not _cruel_.

Still, once she had married him and spent time with him, it had become obvious to her that this 'more' he wanted in marriage was not the 'more' that Rei had wanted. It seemed to her that he had lied about that to her parents and to her. That it really _had_ been nothing more than a Quirk Marriage to Endeavor. And yet...there were times, there were moments, that Rei thought maybe she had it wrong. That maybe he really did desire more, when Enji did something that was out of his way for her, something _more._ They were rare moments, but present, and occasionally he had reached for her in a gentle and _warm_ way that just…

It had been what kept those embers of hope for _more_ alive.

Those moments had been fading, and his temper occasionally spiked after a particularly bad day at work. He had never struck her, or their daughter, but he'd been growing colder by the day. And Rei had worried endlessly about their daughter, about her own marriage, about…. _everything_.

And then she had seen the news. And her heart had dropped to her toes, and Fuyumi had started crying, and all Rei could think about was that she hadn't been feeling well in the morning for the last five days, she'd been extra tired, and it was _very_ familiar, and what if she was _right_ and Enji never met his second child-

She'd rushed to the hospital as soon as she knew where her husband was staying.

And now...now _this_.

Enji had woken up and laid his feelings out for her, spoken aloud in a way he never had before, and for the first time in _years_ Rei wondered if they really _could_ make this marriage of theirs something _great_.

Endeavor was already known for his poor socialization skills. He could coordinate with fellow heroes, command sidekicks and he was very good at his job, but she couldn't recall a time in which he simply relaxed and _talked_ with someone. If all this- this _tension_ , these issues between the two of them had been because of _miscommunication?_ Poor _social skills?_ Such simple things to correct, but things were beginning to paint a picture that concerned her.

If Enji saw no problem with his actions, until _now_ , than in what kind of household did he grow up in? What example was he basing their own marriage on?

Rei's chest felt tight, and tears stung her eyes. She had to take deep breaths, and close her eyes to fight the swell in her emotions. It had been years since this vague sense of _hope_ in her chest had been anything more then embers.

She breathed quietly, pressing her fingers to her mouth.

She would...if Enji was willing to talk to her, to change his reactions, than Rei...Rei would reach back. She'd help him.

If...if the reasons that Enji had such poor socialization skills, such a hard time _interacting_ with people versus _commanding_ them for the reasons Rei was beginning to _think_ he had?

Frost spread down her arms and over her hands, and Rei had to focus on breathing through the rage, to ignore the cloud of steam escaping her mouth, and focused on the image of her husband curling protectively around their daughter.

She would protect... _this_. This fragile piece of what _could_ be, with everything that she had in her.

Rei reached out, carefully cradling her husband's face, and trailing her thumb across the new scar under his eye, following the newly healed skin towards his temple. Even asleep, Enji leaned into her touch, nuzzling into her hand lightly before he settled.

Rei's chest tightened again at the subtle show of trust from her husband, that he had not awakened at the touch, nor with any of her movements. He'd always had a hair trigger when it came to his reactions and instincts, and that he _hadn't_ reacted here was a sign of both how exhausted he had to be, as well as a sign he trusted her.

Even with hospital drugs in him, unless specifically meant to knock him out, Enji would still react to outside pain relievers he had pumping into him now were not enough to keep Enji down if he did not want to be. His body was relaxed and sleeping. He wasn't reacting to her presence.

Rei breathed.

This man on the bed was not the same man who had gone to help control a fire, but he was her husband, the father of her child, and he was _sorry_. She would give him this.

And if, in the process, they could possibly find that _more_ of theirs, the more they had both wanted…?

Rei was willing to give this- _them_ \- a chance.


	5. Chapter 5

Enji had never been so pleased to see sunlight, blue skies and the smell of greenery and fresh air.

He hadn't spent that long in a hospital since before The Disaster. _(Enji shoved the thought that the hospitals were the first to be targets as strategic_ weak points _firmly out of his head. He purposely doesn't think about how there_ were _no hospitals anymore, not really-)_

But he was _out_ , finally. When was the last time he'd been that still, encouraged to stay in bed, to not exert himself? He'd almost forgotten such a thing, waking up in hourly intervals, at the smallest noises. The soft sounds of someone moving quietly would, without a doubt, pull him from sleep, while a heated discussion between three other patients he had slept straight through.

He shook his head, banishing those thoughts as he shifted the small form of the toddler snuggled into his side as Fuyumi wiggled in his grip, trying to get comfortable against his warmth. He cleared his throat glancing over his shoulder to look his wife in his eyes.

"Are you ready, Rei?"

Enji's voice was low, soft, as he waited for her answer, giving her the choice of when to depart. He didn't speak as she stared at him like he was something- _someone-_ she had never seen before, in some kind of dawning disbelief and _hope_. Enji ignored how much that stung.

He deserved it. He deserved so much worse.

"Yes," Rei answered him after a moment of stillness, her face set and her tone approaching happy.

Enji didn't hesitate to extend the hand he didn't have tucked under Fuyumi, holding his daughter firmly in place, to his wife of only five years. Rei took it, without even the slightest of hesitations.

 _Rei took it_ , and Enji couldn't help the motion that welled up in his chest and _oh_.

Gods, he had been a blind _fool._

He'd craved power so much, not even _his own_ , and he hadn't even seen what he could _have_ in the here and now. There was a saying, about the 'truly rich' who had no monetary wealth. Enji had heard it hundreds of times, but it is not until _now_ , holding his daughter in one arm, while the other was wrapped around his wife- _his wife_ \- who allows his hand rested on her stomach, over his unborn child, that he honestly _understands_ it.

He hates himself a little bit more even as something inside him eases.

 **LINEBREAK**

Enji tells Rei the cover story in its entirety- the one that he had given All Might and the one which will mostly be told to the media. He then tells her what parts of it were being released to the public, and while he does skip over some ' _confidential_ ' bits and pieces, he shares far more with her then past-he ever would. Rei is understanding and appreciative of his _honesty_ , even though Enji can't ( _doesn't_ _)_ offer all the details of his supposed mission ( _memory_ _)_ and all Enji can think is that he _doesn't deserve her_.

He never has.

But, may the kami help him, if he wasn't going to try to be worthy of her this time. If he wasn't absolutely and utterly determined to build a _life_ with her and their children. Be there for her in a way he had never been before, there for his children, a _family_ man, who had more important things than just a job and a goal to stand at the top.

In the meantime, there was work to be done. With the information he had provided Toshi about future events, they needed to figure out exactly _where_ All For One had taken Shimura Nana's grandson. Where Shigaraki Tomura, no _Shimura Tenko_ , had ended up. If they can find him, here in this time, they could save him, or even _stop_ All for One getting ahold of him. All For One wouldn't get his hands on Nana's grandson, wouldn't brainwash him in manic obedience.

If they take away All For One's heir, they can stop... _so_ much.

Right here, right now, Shigaraki Tomura didn't exist, only Shimura Tenko, an innocent child who was in danger. If they could change this _one thing_ , he wouldn't be the villain that had destroyed so much, that had left disaster and despair in his wake. Shigaraki Tomura's brilliance couldn't be denied, even if his insanity was the only readily apparent aspect of his existence.

If they were too late to save him before All for One had arranged the Incident, he was- _would be-_ a child taken, tortured, twisted and hurt, who had been manipulated to see All for One as his one and only savior. A child waiting for- hoping- _praying for_ \- a hero to come, to stop the pain and hurt, to reach out and offer him a hand above the madness. In the Before, it had been a _villain_ to do that, and it had opened the way for the manipulations to come.

Enji had seen enough children die, enough children hurt and tortured, in the Before to last multiple lifetimes _(and he would_ _ **know-**_ _)_. If he could do it, he would save whoever he could. By whatever means necessary.

Even- perhaps _especially_ \- Shimura Tenko.

 **LINEBREAK**

Enji near vibrated out of his skin with suppressed nerves. Rei had quietly told him she was pregnant shortly before the hospital had officially released him, and he had gone out of his way to get today- her first ultrasound- off of hero work. He'd worked with his sidekicks and Toshi, as well as a few other local heroes to manage it.

 _(Quite a few had looked close to a panic attack when he approached them to ask for help, and one of the Pros had spit his coffee out when Enji had actually asked him to cover some of Endeavor's patrol route._

 _It would have been funny, except this antisocial behavior, his attitude and ego had caused..._ so many _problems later on._

 _Enji was determined to be present for when Rei went into labor. He hadn't even been present for Fuyumi's birth. Endeavor was called away to a massive forest fire raging out of the country. He spent a solid months cleaning up that mess and when he finally returned home, he collapsed in his bed and slept for three days straight._

 _After he woke up and made his way downstairs, he found Rei in the kitchen, feeding his first child. She had been… understanding about his lack of presence at their daughter's birth. But it was a strange experience, to be sure.)_

He had made a mental note to work on his private image as well as his public, even as he finished arrangements for a quiet day off, so he could go with his wife to the hospital for their first glimpse of Touya. He hadn't gotten a chance to do so last time, but this life would be different.

 _(He wondered if he could arrange for teamwork drills in UA, possibly bribe Nedzu with visits from the Number Two Hero? Possibly Toshi too- he'd appreciate teamwork drills.)_

In the Before, his attitude and the beginnings of his downward spiral as he hyper-focused on beating All Might, had caused undue stress on Rei. His anger at Fuyumi's lack of his ideal image of a half and half quirk, and subsequent shouting, paired with his need to ensure Fuyumi's quirk was useful for combat even as his hyper-focus became obsession when it turned out it _wasn't,_ had lead to the way he had lashed out at those around him.

Rei didn't handle the additional stress well and it had led to a premature birth for Touya. That premature birth had lead to health complications that hadn't been discovered until Touya had manifested his Quirk- Cremation. His skin hadn't been able to handle the levels of heat he could reach, and he had burned horribly when he manifested it.

 _(During a training session much to harsh for the young child he had been-)_

Enji was determined that this time, _this time_ , he wouldn't cause that problem, would help Rei and make sure that Touya made it to to full term. That his son wouldn't suffer from the scars he had carried on his body, made worse as Enji tried to train him, to help control the intense heat his flames automatically produced.

 _(He would later learn that part of the reason his son- who called himself Dabi- had stayed with Shigaraki was the quirk All for One had given him, that allowed him to use his fire without burning himself farther.)_

But today was the first time Rei was going to be able to _see_ their son on an ultrasound, and Enji was _nervous_. What if it _wasn't_ Touya? What if his actions erased his children? Was there really destiny, fate and gods that watched over the world? Or was this all random happenstance? Were Natsuo and Shouto going to be erased from existence because of his actions?

Enji could honestly say he didn't know. But he _prayed_ , in a way he had never done before. He _prayed_ for kami- any kami that was listening- to have mercy, to take whatever they needed from him, but let him have this. He didn't deserve it, but his _children_ certainly did.

Rei was laughing at him, entirely unaware of the nature of his line of thinking. He forcibly set aside his troubling thoughts and focused on his wife, content to let her think he was just nervous. Enji could see her struggling to hide her smile behind a dainty hand, but he pretended not to notice it. Inwardly, he was pleased she felt marginally more comfortable in his presence to express herself in such a way.

She was beautiful when she smiled.

 _(He hadn't given her reasons to smile back then-)_

Enji nearly set the waiting room on fire when the doctor called his family inside. He easily swung his daughter up, quirking a smile when she giggled in delight at the height she reached in his arms. He had missed Fuyumi's first ultrasound- having been dealing with a villain attack at the time- and hadn't made it to the rest of his children's either for various reasons. Though he _had_ tried each time.

This was his first.

 _(It wouldn't be his last, not like Before.)_

He steeled his nerves and gently helped Rei to her feet, keeping a firm grip on Fuyumi as he matched her steps, walking with her towards the doctor. He kept half of his attention on his daughter, adjusting her in his arms as they sat down in the room and said their pleasantries to the attending physician.

He listened attentively as the doctor spoke on what Rei should expect, and what they would be looking for here and now. Doctor Murasaki talked through the stages of pregnancy, and how this could affect his wife, what symptoms should be watched for, and about nutrition.

Enji….could probably have not...asked so many questions. Especially in his commanding _Hero-voice._ But he was concerned and he wanted to do this right.

 _(He ignored how shocked Rei looked, and instead basked in her shy smile and pleased eyes.)_

The doctor humored him at least. Answered everything he could think of, and then more he _hadn't_ , and she did it in a way that was understandable. Could doctors be tipped for answering panicked father's questions? Panicked _hero_ father's questions? He'd have to check. Doctor Murasaki deserved _something_ as a thank you.

When the time finally came, that the doctor spread gel on Rei's baby bump and ran the scanner over her skin, she pointed at a screen and said in pleasant tones, " _That's your baby."_

Enji couldn't fight the way his eyes filled with tears and the hand that suddenly squeezed his heart.

That was his boy. Just a small mass, not even remotely baby shaped yet, a tiny little cashew of cells, but it was _his son_. His very alive, soon to be born, _amazing_ son. A son he would make sure could use his quirk without hurting himself. Or, if he never wanted to use it, he wouldn't have to. Anything he wanted to do, Enji would help him. His eyes darted down to his curious daughter. He'd help them all.

Enji didn't even register how he reached forward, fingers trembling, to press against the screen, eyes unblinking and fixed on the small window into his growing son. He didn't see how Rei looked so very _happy_ , staring at her husband in ever growing hope and affection, watching a a small smile curved Enji's lips and his eyes were wet.

 _Gods_ , he owed Midoriya Izuku _everything._

 **LINEBREAK**

Rei blinked rapidly to stop the tears from falling, watching her husband stare at his future child. He was so…. _awed_ , so gentle. His hand shook, and she could see the wetness in his eyes from her place leaning back. One of his hands clasped hers, while the other traced the outline of his growing child.

He had missed Fuyumi's birth, called away for a disaster relief with out of control wildfires. He was only supposed to be away for a short time, back in time for the birth, but the wildfires had raged, and grown worse, and Endeavor had been _needed_. They'd thought it would be fine. He was supposed to have made it back before the birth, even with the extended stay helping with the fires.

He'd been with her to some of the ultrasound appointments, but he'd never come into the room with her. He'd always asked after the baby's health, and her own, but he...there hadn't been the interest and attention he was now displaying.

Unfortunately, due to the disaster, he'd missed Rei's labor and the birth of his child. By the time he made it back home, Rei had already had and named Fuyumi, been in her home and well on her way to recovering.

But this...he was actively participating.

Asking a million different questions, retaining the answers, and he looked….

Gods, he was-

He was about _to cry._ Rei had never seen Todoroki Enji cry _at all_ before this incident that had ended with him in the hospital. If she didn't _know_ for a fact this was her husband, she'd almost call him a different person. But she was so-

- _she was so happy._

She could see _love_ in his eyes when he looked at the sonogram, and their child hadn't even really _formed_ yet. Rei could only hope this was sign of the future to come, for her and her children. And as her husband turned away from the screen, lifting Fuyumi absently, so she could trace the shape of her little sibling, and those shining, _soft_ , blue eyes met her own, the tiny genuine smile on his lips, she thought…

Well, she thought maybe the gods had finally smiled down on her, and her family.

She smiled back, brilliant and glittering.


	6. Chapter 6

**On the First day of Christmas, my favorite Authors gave to me: One Favor Fire!**

 **Hope you all enjoy!**

 **LINEBREAK**

Enji frowned darkly down at the map in front of him, displeasure written in the deep furrow of his brow. Toshi- in his smaller form, and so much _healthier_ than Enji had ever seen before, no longer skeletal and all sharp angles, no scar, filled out properly and whole, _no missing organs_ \- leaned forward, crossing another section off the map.

They were working diligently to hunt down Shimura Tenko, breaking the map into smaller, more manageable sections as they hunted leads and tracked the kid.

So far, they hadn't had any luck. And that... _did_ make Enji a little nervous. The more time they took, the more likely the child would be taken, hurt and brainwashed, before they could save him.

But they wouldn't give up. Enji refused to give up. He would _absolutely_ change the future. Starting here.

Here, where the most potential for change existed. It could make the future worse, preventing Tenko from becoming Shigaraki, but Enji doubted it.

And more than that, he didn't have it inside himself to _ever again_ see a child hurt beyond repair when he could stop it.

 _(He'd seen his kids broken-dying-dead. He'd seen students that became his kids jaded-dying-crippled. He'd seen civilians caught up in the mess maimed-dead-_ _ **changed**_ _._

 _ **Never again.**_ _)_

He leaned back, stretching his body, and eyeing the map carefully.

Izuku was a tactical genius. More than that- he was a tactical genius who could emotionally connect to and read the emotions of others, once he'd had practice. He was curious and creative, and so very stubborn.

He'd given Enji so much to work with, once he'd stepped back into the past. So much information on the situation, the people, the positions, of everything and everyone he could think of. He hadn't thought of everything, unsure exactly where Enji would appear, but he'd given more than Enji thought any one else would have been able to.

And that included what he had read and deduced off of Shigaraki Tomura.

It was why Enji even knew where to _start_ looking. How he knew to _keep_ looking.

Why he was making plans to introduce himself to Midoriya Inko, who did not yet have a son, but was a very well known lawyer. She wasn't _famous_ , not yet, but she was very, very good at her job, and with the revelations Enji and Toshi kept coming across while looking for the boy, they would need that.

That it gave him an 'in' with the future mother of Midoriya Izuku was a very pleasing bonus.

Enji was pretty sure they were on the right track too, and the reason they kept running into _other_ problems, was that someone kept moving Tenko as they approached.

That or that person was possibly trying to distract them from Tenko at all, by putting other things in the way.

Unfortunately for All for One, Enji had seen the future of a world where they ignored Shimura Tenko and he would never _stop_ looking for the kid.

Not until they'd saved him.

 **LINEBREAK**

Enji laughed, bright and happier than he'd been in longer than he could remember.

After hours, days, weeks of looking for Tenko, of running into problems and other horrors, the dark side of heroics…

The side that no one ever wanted to talk about or advertise, it was good to come home and see his daughter. See his family. Remember _why_ he was diving head first, eyes wide open, into the pit of the Underworld.

Fuyumi giggled from her place on his chest, her hands pressed over his heart. His daughter was breathless with her laughter and joy as she hollered, "I got you, daddy!"

Enji kept laughing from his place sprawled on the floor, a hand tucked under his daughter. "You did," he agreed, leaning up to press a gentle kiss on her forehead. "Well done, Snowflake."

Even as he settled back down and simply watched as his daughter giggled and smiled in his hands, he couldn't help the sharp pain of regret in his chest. He had never _played_ with his kids, last time. Never allowed himself to be tackled to the ground, never wrestled carefully with them, never played catch, or colored with them...never _lived_ with them.

He was never a _father_ to them, not a parent, or even a responsible adult in their lives.

More like the jailer to their prison. The Warden they had learned to fear and work around, the person they hated most in the world.

And sprawled out on the ground as he was now, having allowed Fuyumi to ' _defeat_ ' him, he felt like his heart was three times too big for his body, with the way he was unable to control his own laughter or how his face twisted with an uncontrollable grin… Enji couldn't imagine _why_ he had missed out on this before. How he could have considered _anything_ worth more than this.

He could hear Rei laughing from the kitchen, and Enji closed his eyes for a moment, basking in his girls laughing happily around him, in a house that was always too silent, too cold and nothing like a home should be. The only thing that would eventually make this better was the sound of his sons laughing with them.

And he would make absolutely _sure_ he got to see that too.

A spark of flame deepened in his eyes, leaning a crimson glint to his gaze.

 _By any means necessary,_ he thought to himself.

Still the idyllic moment was too precious to him to break the atmosphere, so he calmed his blood and allowed the tension to release in his shoulders. Enji basked quietly for a moment, before a noise caught his attention. He couldn't help his reaction, grinning like an idiot as he tilted his head towards the kitchen, looking at inverted vision of his wife, a soft smile curling her lips.

Rei had a camera.

Enji smiled so wide his eyes closed with the force of it. Truly, a smile worthy of All Might.

He rolled to his feet, pulling a shrieking Fuyumi with him, absently tossing her into the air, listening to his daughter's shriek turn into a squeal, that morphed into more giggles, utterly trusting that he wouldn't let her hit the ground. He caught his daughter easily, before tugging his wife into the tangle of limbs.

He was utterly _entranced_ by the way his wife _didn't flinch_ from his touch, and instead leaned into his hands. How her laughter grew louder as he wrapped the arm not holding their daughter up around her waist, and spun with her, leading her into a silly little dance across their living room.

Absolutely captivated by how his wife followed his lead, and even dared to tug at him and take the lead from him. He went willingly, and tried to absorb the way his heart and soul felt _lighter_ than he could remember them being ever before. Tried to sink the sound of his girls' pleased laughter into his spirit, for when the days seemed darker, and the nightmares rose from the depths of his mind. He dipped Rei with his free arm, supporting her easily, and she tossed her head back, white hair cascading over his arm, and grey eyes _shining_ , her smile so large, and relaxed in a way he couldn't remember her being ever before.

Enji couldn't stop himself, as he leaned down and captured her lips in a kiss, and he reveled in the fact that Rei kissed him _back_.

In the Before, he had never….he hadn't kissed his wife. Except for the wedding, he couldn't ever remember sharing in the simple show of affection, of sharing that intimate act with her, at any other time.

Sure he had pressed his lips to her cheek sometimes, for pictures with the press, but it had been...robotic. Dead and free of any real _feeling_.

He had never _kissed_ her, the way a husband should have. Never pressed his lips to the back of her hand, or her wrist in an absent show of affection and adoration. Never kissed her, slow and meticulous, never learned the way she would react to how he tilted his head, or angled his body, never learned how she would reach up and grab his hair when he kissed her just right.

Never heard the little gasp, or stutter in her breathing.

He made a point to learn everything he could _now._ To learn how to share in these moments, in these learning experiences.

Let _Rei_ learn his own tells, how his body would _shudder_ when she trailed her fingers over his chest, with her quirk active.

 _(Enji had never known cold could be_ sensual _before, never had cause to learn it, with his quirk keeping him running so much hotter than anything else. He had never been cold before. Not really.)_

Power and Joy looked _breathtaking_ on his wife.

Enji was sad he had missed _this_ before, but he wouldn't make that mistake twice.

 **LINEBREAK**

Toshi wasn't used to being greeted with glee when he was in his smaller form- granted with his height and bulk he wasn't really 'small' even in his powered-down form- but he wasn't used to people lighting up when they saw him like that.

Todoroki Fuyumi was an exception.

When days-nights-weeks of looking for his mentor's grandson started wearing him thin, when they days started to tear at his mind, and stack up-

Enji liked to take him home with him, to have dinner with his family, and play with his daughter.

She'd started calling him Uncle Toshi.

Toshinori _adored_ her.

 _(And if, in the back of his head, he heard Enji saying 'He was your Son' well-_

 _He'd never thought about children before this.)_

Enji had also been insistent on Toshinori learning to teach.

His days had started to fill with things _besides_ hero work.

With family, friends, and activities that Toshinori _enjoyed_.

And while he loved hero work, adored being able to save and win, and be the pillar he had set himself up to be, he hadn't realized how _closed off_ he had become to... _people_.

How his world had _revolved_ around his job before Enji had barged into his life, laid an insane future down at his feet, and asked him for help.

Not until he heard a tiny voice call "UNCLE TOSHI!" every time he walked into Enji's home, her eyes lighting up like stars as she rushed for his legs. Not until he started interacting with _people_ on a more personal level than pulling them out of a fire, or stopping an accident, beyond a loud "I AM HERE" and fake beaming smile.

It made him all the more determined to save Shimura Tenko, because that was _his mentor's grandson_ , and Toshi refused to allow him to fall into darkness while he had breath in his body. That boy would have been Toshi's _family_ , if Nana had kept her son, and Toshi had grown up next to him.

The boy _was still_ Toshi's family, and he would prove it to him as soon as he was able to find him.

He had learned- from these little breaks at the Todoroki home- that he needed these small moments. These little reminders. That stepping back from the case and hunt, for a few hours, letting himself laugh as he play danced across the yard with Fuyumi on his toes, or tossed her into the air to shrieks of laughter and of "Higher Uncle Toshi!" were _worth it_. That the lunch breaks, and quick updates from Rei were soothing. Every time they went back to the case, it had refreshed them in a way, given them more drive. Stopped them from burning out.

Toshinori was learning the value of _family_ from this tiny family, and he looked forward to the day he could welcome Shimura Tenko into it.

 **LINEBREAK**

Midoriya Inko was used to seeing cases that were...dark. She was very good at what she did, and as such she got the higher ranked cases most often. Her analytical mind, the way she break down motives and actions and reactions to come together into a perfect picture had earned her attention from all over the world.

This case file however...was dangerous. She knew it was- the people involved were breaking down a _ring_ of villains, finding leads on _cold cases_ that had been closed down, finding new horrors at every turn while trying to track a missing child.

She had never seen a case like this before, brought to her attention specifically. She wasn't sure who her clients were- she'd spoken and worked with them, but it was all over phones and such, and she hadn't met them in person. They were Heroes though, Inko was certain. She'd signed enough nondisclosure agreements and seen enough evidence that only heroes could be the ones working on this case.

The two men running it had _asked_ for her to be the lawyer that worked with all the evidence they gathered, that would work to get the missing boy into one Yagi Toshinori's custody when he was found. Shimura Tenko was a small child, only meant to be a toddler, and it frustrated Inko to tears that whoever had him was making it so hard to get him back.

It also made her more _determined_. She'd agreed to solve this case, and Inko hadn't failed in her job yet.

She would throw herself into helping Yagi Toshinori and Todoroki Enji solve this case, would throw her analytical mind into finding the faintest patterns and clues.

She'd already helped them head in the right direction, as evidenced by the amount of _bullshit_ they kept finding to distract them from their goal.

Inko growled under her breath, eyes narrowed on the sheets of paper spread over her desk, it was her 'working copies' so she had notes all over the margins and hand color coded highlighter splashed over it. She turned to her corkboard, paper pinned in place, and more color coded strings trailing from point to point, where Inko had found links and patterns.

She hoped this time...she hoped she had been _right_ about this last clue.

She eyed the red thumbtack she'd marked her hypothesis with, various strings linking to her reasons for her theory that the toddler was hidden _right there._

She breathed.

She hated cases that involved innocent children into things like this.

 **LINEBREAK**

Enji crouched down, surprisingly stealthy for a man his size. _(He'd learned to be when it was the difference between life and death.)_

Midoriya Inko was a _gift_. He hadn't realized how much of his analytical and deduction skills Deku had gotten from his _mother_. Her eyes and focus on the case had lead to many breakthroughs that Enji was sure would have taken so much _(too much)_ longer, or not been spotted at all without her.

He eyed the warehouse target, eyes drifting up to meet a hidden and silent set of determined blue, crouched across from him, also hidden from sight.

They'd have to be _so_ careful.

This Op depended stealth, their ability to get inside without getting caught. Another team was attacking a different location, the more 'obvious' one as a-hopefully- distraction from _this_.

 _This_ lead, which had been found only because Midoriya Inko had spotted a pattern in movement and locations others had missed, and had passed it along to Enji in conversation on the secure line he had given her for the case.

He wondered absently if he could convince Inko to join his agency as an analyst. Her skill would be priceless.

He carefully slid closer to the edge of his roof, staying low and crouched as he approached a better viewpoint. He kept an ear on the comm-chatter even as he pulled on years of experience after All for One rose to spot any giveaways, or signs he needed to respond to or pass along.

His hands trembled a little bit, as he steadied his breathing.

Another moment of silence before Enji rose, deadly quiet as he took a few steps back and then _leapt_. Right before he would have landed, and given his position and presence away with a sound, a careful controlled burst of Hellfire cut his momentum. It was like taking a step forward, as he soundlessly touched down on the roof. The team he was working with had a quirk user who could cause the security cameras to loop on themselves, preventing that from giving away his presence.

He turned, nodding once to All Might, bracing himself as the blonde hero leapt towards him.

Enji had pulled this same maneuver more than once in the Future, when they couldn't _afford_ to make a sound, with the kids and with the pro heroes that survived.

So as Toshi began to come towards the roof in a way that would absolutely give them away, Enji easily stepped _upward_ , his fire keeping his feet _just_ high enough to not burn the roof, less heat and more just enough to power himself off the ground. His arms snagged Toshi by the waist, letting his flames help absorb the momentum and stop them from going anywhere. Once he had stopped it, he easily stepped out of the air, taking Toshi with him and setting him down gently.

Their arrival was nearly silent, and they both lowered themselves to the roof of their target warehouse, wanting to stay out of sight of anyone who may look.

Enji met Toshinori's stare, as they both eyed the skylight.

It was time to get this mission moving.

 **LINEBREAK**

It wasn't like Inko had... _planned_ the whole thing. Exactly.

She just...she had a bad feeling, and since _she_ had been the one to pinpoint the location, she knew exactly where the whole op would be happening for Todoroki-san and Yagi-san. There was a reason she was the lawyer Intelligence Agencies liked to use if they could pick who to pull on their teams.

She was clever enough to follow along with their operatives, and smart and observant enough to sometimes pick up unconventional patterns and hints that were missed.

It didn't take her long to logic her way to when the heroes would be striking the warehouse she had pinpointed for them.

And she had a _bad feeling_.

So she pulled on her old Vigilante costume, and settled herself far enough away to not be picked up or hinder the mission, but close enough to help, to interfere if it was needed.

She hadn't needed to be Jade in...a long while. It was strange to be wrapped in the pale green suit and full face mask, her hair temporarily black, and using contacts to lighten her eyes to jade just in case she lost the mask. Strange to be doing the mental 'stretches' that prepared her to use her quirk in ways she hadn't needed to in a long time.

 **LINEBREAK**

It was the right place.

 _Months_ of work, of careful planning and plotting, and tracking, and Enji was finally in the right place. Shimura Tenko was within his reach.

He was hurt, and scared, but he was _there._

All Enji had to do was _save him_.

All Enji had to do to _change everything_ was here, in this room, a breath away.

But they'd been prepared for a rescue attempt. Maybe not as well as they would have liked, but these villains had been _ready_ for heroes to invade their space. And they fought back _viciously_ , as if they had something precious on the line.

Enji and Toshi would be able to beat them, of course, but they'd been meticulous in their set up, and the heroes would have to be very _careful_. The villains cared nothing for the damage they did, and the heroes had to keep the child safe, and fight the villains off, and try not to bring the warehouse down around them in the various ways the villains had set up to trap them.

It was that need to be cautious and protect the toddler in their midst that kept causing problems, as the villains had no hesitations in taking advantage of that fact. And yet they were almost...manic in their desire to keep the toddler away from Endeavor and All Might.

Something wasn't….right. Something was wrong.

If the entire warehouse hadn't been lined with _very flammable_ material, Enji would have struck fast and hard with his fire to get rid of the villains on the feeling alone. As it was, he was reduced to quirkless fighting, and while he was holding his own, and taking down anyone that come at him, it was nowhere near as quickly as he would have with a simple controlled blast of flame.

 _(He'd gotten very good at swirling flames around someone just the right way to burn the oxygen away, and knock them out quickly, in the Before. If not for flammable materials and possible gas, Enji would have done it already.)_

He snarled, watching the toddler cry, watching those terrified eyes stare out at all of them, begging for someone- anyone- to reach out and _save him_.

All Might could see it too, as he lashed out with a controlled blast of One for All, and took out a small group of villains.

Enji almost wanted to grin, as the villains started going down and _staying_ there, as the toddler Tenko started looking hopeful. As it started looking like they were going to get through this without setting the warehouse on fire, or doing any damage that could pull attention away from the 'distraction' group of heroes and back to the warehouse base.

And then he felt that telltale whisper of cold against his neck, the sixth sense honed over the many years he had been on the run, and had to watch for this very thing.

 _Kurogiri_.

Enji cursed sharply, lunging forward, yelling " _All Might!"_

But he was too slow, and it was obvious he was going to _miss and they would have_ _ **to start at square one again-**_

 **LINEBREAK**

Inko had moved closer, towards the heroes, once they had broken into the warehouse. She stated up on the roof at first, watching as the two pro heroes snuck the glass open, and jumped into the middle of a gang of villains. Then she'd slung herself inside, but stayed up in the rafters, and out of the way.

They were handling the villains fine, so Inko moved to hover over the child, still in the rafters but ready to intervene if it was needed. She wished she could just drop down and grab the child, prevent the fear she knew he had to be feeling, but she was technically a vigilante and _absolutely_ not supposed to be there. More than that, in this moment, if she appeared, she'd probably be mistaken for a villain and she _really_ didn't want All Might or Endeavor to turn their attention on her person with the impression she was a villain.

And while she _really_ wanted to save the child, Inko wasn't confident in her skills to fend off multiple attackers while protecting a small terrified child. Not enough to risk the child's life on her abilities, or overconfidence.

Instead she hid herself, and used her quirk to tug and shove villains that came too close to the kid into the path of the two furious top heroes. She put herself into a position of protection, and kept her eyes, ears, and senses all open.

And when Endeavor lunged, a furious, fear tinged " _All Might!"_ ripped out of his throat, towards the child she was hovering over, Inko automatically looked down to see what had caused it.

Great billowing clouds of purple had appeared around the boy, a deeper, closer to black center beginning to open under the toddler. Inko didn't wait beyond seeing the resigned terror on the small boy's face, or the way the small feet started _sinking_ , before she reacted.

She leapt from her hiding place, both hands extended, latched onto the small boy with her quirk and _pulled_.

The toddler screamed as he was yanked suddenly upwards, and crashed into her chest, her arms wrapping around the boy automatically, a soft "I've got you Tenko" stopping the boy from thrashing too badly.

She kept with her momentum, using her quirk to pull small flat pieces of metal off her costume, which she bounced off of, using them to change direction with her feet, avoiding the yawning blackness of the strange portals that appeared in purple smoke.

She worked quickly to bring herself and Tenko over to All Might and Endeavor, only allowing herself to touch the ground once she was solidly behind the two heroes.

She'd have quite a bit of explaining to do, once this was over, but...her arms tightened on the trembling child pressed against her chest, tiny hands carefully folded so his fingers didn't touch her all at once.

If they managed to get out of this, having saved Shimura Tenko, Inko would consider it a good day.


End file.
